


We'll Get Lost Together

by orphan_account



Category: Be More Chill - Iconis/Tracz
Genre: F/F, Gen, Kid Brooke
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-14
Updated: 2020-04-14
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:40:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,135
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23646292
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: When Brooke shows up in school as a toddler, it might just be the extra push Chloe needs to help her become a better person.
Relationships: Brooke Lohst/Chloe Valentine
Comments: 1
Kudos: 27





	We'll Get Lost Together

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This is my first work for the BMC Fandom so I'm still trying to familiarize myself with everything, but I caught on to the Pinkberry dynamic pretty quickly. By the way, feedback is much appreciated. x
> 
> Enjoy!

Brooke’s empty desk next to Chloe was a strange sight.

She was never late, hell, she was usually one of the first people to make it to class. In between periods, Chloe would text her phone, even called at one point, but to no response.

During third period, a teacher assistant knocks on the door of the class with a crying child in an oversized yellow cardigan, and Chloe’s eyes almost bulge out of their sockets. She’s seen enough weird shit in her lifetime that she knew this wasn’t outside the realm of possibility. Unless Brooke had managed to hide a secret child behind her back, this was most definitely her best friend in the form of a toddler.

“I’m sorry, I tried asking where her parents were but she just keeps asking for Chloe. Are you related?” The teacher assistant asks, and all eyes turn to look at her.

Chloe is stunned, even after Brooke yanks her hand away from the assistant’s grasp and runs over to Chloe, barely managing to wrap her arms around her middle. She buries her face into her side, tears staining her shirt.

“Yeah, um, she’s my cousin,” Chloe lies feebly, almost stumbling on her words. _God, Valentine, you’re better than this._

She resists the urge to push her away in disgust, not wanting any stains. Instead, she awkwardly pets her hair in an futile attempt to calm her down. She’s always had a soft spot for Brooke, but this was just all too strange to her and she has no idea how to react.

It doesn’t stop her from trying, though.

“B-Brooke?” she whispers, not wanting to be heard. 

Brooke’s head snaps up, her eyes puffy but sparkled with familiarity. She scrunches her nose a bit, and Chloe could confirm just from that that it was really her. 

“Hi.” Brooke whispers back, breaking out into the tiniest smile. She has always been timid, and that seems to have magnified with her current state. “Up.”

“What? No. Sit on your desk, over here.” Chloe said, removing the tiny limbs around her waist and leaning forward to pat the desk next to her. So many people have been staring with mouths open, but a quick death glare and the teacher grabbing their attention gives them a false sense of privacy, even for a little while.

Brooke shrinks into herself, sniffling a bit before complying, and Chloe actually feels a bit bad. She shakes the feeling off quickly before she changes her mind, and when the bell rings for lunch break, she stands up, holding her hand out for Brooke to take.

“You coming?” Chloe asks gently, but with a bit of impatience lacing her tone. Brooke, not sensing any of it, smiles brightly and happily wraps her tiny hand around two of her fingers.

Brooke struggles to keep up with Chloe’s long strides, who was ignoring all the whispers and phones surrounding her. By the time they were at the cafeteria, Brooke was panting lightly at the sprint she had to do. Chloe looks down at her best friend, and lightly squeezes her hands to make her look up at her. 

“So. We’re going to have to talk about this sooner rather than later, but for now, lunch. What do you want? What can you eat, even?” Chloe asks, and Brooke only blinks up at her, trying to comprehend the long string of questions and wasn’t sure which she should answer first. “Hey, can you understand me?”

Brooke nods once with her eyes squeezing shut, not liking the clipped edge to Chloe’s tone. She doesn’t want to get in trouble, she doesn’t even know what she’s doing wrong to get her to talk like that. All she knows is that Chloe’s the most familiar face she could trust, but right now, she wasn’t so sure.

“Hey. Hey, Brooke,” Chloe musters up every ounce of gentleness in her body, kneeling down to meet her eye to eye. “I’m just as new to this as you are. So we need to help each other through this, okay?”

Brooke nods her head, and as Chloe stands up, she offers her hand out to her again to hold before grabbing a lunch tray with her free hand. She manages to acquire an extra apple, drink, and a larger portion of fries, sharing a meaningful glance with the lunch lady before motioning over to the small child attached to her hip.

Chloe struggles to balance the tray of food, and she releases her hold on Brooke’s hand, leading her to hook her fingers around the belt hoop of her pants instead. She walks over to her usual table with the SQUIP squad, who was simply staring at the pair. They’ve already had their theories, but needed further confirmation if they were correct. 

Chloe sits down and lifts Brooke up to sit on the table instead—she was impossibly tiny and figures that she’ll be needing help to eat anyway. 

“So, are we just going to ignore this?” Jeremy was completely slack-jawed. Not only has their friend become a tiny human, but Chloe actually accepting it? It was truly a sight to behold.

“I’m just as lost as you are. But yes, this is Brooke.” Chloe sighs, portioning off her side of fries as she cuts the apple into manageable pieces with a plastic knife. “Here, go nuts.”

“Thank you,” Brooke says quietly, reaching out for a small fry. Christine is vibrating in her seat at how ‘absolutely adorable’ Brooke looks, and Jenna has her phone out, taking photos of the two of them.

“What, I mean, but just…how is that even possible?” Michael asks, and Chloe only shrugs, nonchalantly screwing open the bottle cap that Brooke hands to her. A bit of juice dribbles down her chin, and Chloe was quick to hand her a tissue.

“You gotta admit though, baby Brooke is really cute.” Christine smiles, and tries to get her attention. “Hey, Brookie!” 

Brooke whips her head around to look at Christine, and she waves back at her, smiling a bit. Christine does a peek-a-boo motion, and Brooke just tilts her head in confusion.

“Oh my God, I’m dead.” Jenna comments, managing to film to whole exchange. Chloe taps on the table, catching her attention.

“Finish your food,” Chloe says curtly, and Brooke’s ears redden a bit as she nods, working through her apple slices. “I’m gonna ask you a few questions, alright?”

Brooke nods once, wiping her bottom lip with the sleeve of her cardigan. 

“What do you remember?” Chloe asks, and the group, already done with their food, all lean forward to listen to her response. Brooke looks around self-consciously as she steps down from her seat on the table, quickly straddling her little legs around Chloe’s sides and hiding her face into her chest. She feels her shaking against her, and she reaches up to rub her back to help her relax. “Hey, you’re okay.”

“I think we better…” Jeremy notices Brooke’s panic and ushers everyone to leave the table, leaving the pair to talk in semi-privacy. 

"They're gone, Brooke," Chloe informs her, and Brooke acknowledges with a hum, balling her fists into Chloe's jacket. She pulls her back a bit to wipe her eyes, and Brooke helps her out by running the sleeves of her cardigan against her cheeks. 

“Don’t ‘member a lot,” Brooke sniffles as she plays with Chloe’s necklaces, leaning against Chloe’s clasped hands around her back. “I fell ‘sleep last night and I’m awake here.”

“Okay, okay,” Chloe nods, filing that bit of information in her head. What she can’t figure out is how her first instinct was to look for Chloe if she has no recall of her teenage life when she was turned. She interlocks her fingers and reached her thumbs out to stroke Brooke’s sides, and she sees her calming a bit at the sensation. “How did you end up finding me?”

“You’re my friend,” Brooke says simply, choosing this moment to look up at her. “Friends find each other.”

“Yeah, okay,” Chloe fights off a smile, but feels herself soften a bit at her response. Baby Brooke wasn’t too bad—in many ways, she was like regular Brooke, with her sweetness and timid personality. This one just reminded Chloe of innocence, how she was before she started climbing the ranks. It was…refreshing. “Last one. Do you know how old you are?”

Brooke scrunches her eyebrows together for a moment before finally holding up three fingers. “I’m only almost three, but I say I’m three.” 

Chloe chuckles at that, and nods, as if keeping a very important secret. “Don’t worry, I won’t tell.”

“Promise?” Brooke asks, holding her pinky out. Chloe looks around to see if anybody was looking, and wraps her pinky around her impossibly tiny one.

“Promise.”

The day carries on as normally as it could with a two, rather, three year old following your every move, but it’s apparently been the talk of the campus and the teachers have been informed of the strange arrangement as well. Chloe attends all the classes with Brooke seated in her own desk, and on Chloe’s lap for that one period when she went down for a nap. 

Chloe was heading to drama club just to let Mr. Reyes know that she won’t be joining in when Brooke trips over her own feet from trying to keep up. Chloe waits for Brooke to stand up but she stays seated on the floor, rubbing her eyes with balled up fists.

“Come on, Brooke, I don’t have all day,” Chloe complains, and she huffs out a breath before crouching down to her level. “What’s wrong now, baby girl?”

“I’m tired,” Brooke sniffles, her bottom lip quivering. She adds after a while, “You walk fast.” 

“That’s how I normally walk,” Chloe defends, but then realizes that this Brooke’s height barely reaches her hip. She must’ve been exhausted. “But I’m sorry, okay? I’ll walk slower.”

“Carry, please?” Brooke asks, almost pleads, her hands up and outstretched. “Please, Chloe?”

Something in Chloe’s heart breaks, her mind drifting back to earlier this morning and the sad look on her face at being pushed away. Without another word, Chloe slings her backpack around both her shoulders before picking Brooke up into her arms. She locks her arms around her neck, mumbling a soft ‘thank you’ as she rests her head against her shoulder. She shifts Brooke to rest on her hip and pulls out her phone from her pocket, shooting Christine a quick message that she and Brooke are skipping out.

“Can anyone stay with you at your house?” Chloe asks the little girl in her arms, and she looks at her earnestly, shaking her head. She rolls her eyes, but holds her closer as she walks towards her car.

Chloe straps her securely in the back seat, hoping the window tint was enough to hide the fact that she wasn’t in a car seat.

“Chloe?” Brooke pipes up before Chloe could start the car, and she eyes her from the rear view mirror, humming in response. Brooke doesn’t hear this, making her repeat herself. “Chloe.”

Chloe twists around to look at her at the back, ready to ask, and she notices that Brooke startles in fear, turtling into herself as she pulls at the cuffs of her cardigan. 

Chloe was well aware of the fact that Brooke was afraid of her, that she’ll do whatever she’ll ask her to do, but seeing her as a child that was still scared of her didn’t settle very well. She knows that she was making a massive effort into becoming a better person, but now, seeing Brooke caving in on herself at just how harsh she moves, she wonders if she’s trying hard enough. 

“Hey, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you,” Chloe apologizes, reaching out to squeeze her knee. _That’s comforting, right?_ “Are you hungry? We’ll go to Pinkberry, how’s that sound?”

Brooke scrunches her eyebrows in confusion, and Chloe only grins, facing forward to start the car. 

“Oh, you’ll love it. Trust me.” 

She drives quickly but carefully towards the mall, managing to get a parking spot near the entrance. She pulls Brooke out from the backseat and settles her on her hip, trying her best to consider her needs first from now on. 

Chloe makes a beeline towards their favorite frozen yogurt shop, and she orders her usual while letting Brooke choose her new toppings with an original flavored base. She settles on fruit and chocolate, not far from her regular order. She sits Brooke down in front of her to take a video of her first bite, figuring that she might as well document her while she’s tiny to show when she goes back to normal.

“And?” Chloe asks, waiting for her reaction. She smiles brightly after her first spoonful, quickly scooping another one. 

“It’s good!” Brooke beams, her mouth coated with melted yogurt and chocolate. “I love Pinkberry!”

“I figured you would.” 

After their quick fro-yo stop, Chloe passes by a boutique store selling children’s clothes. She has no idea how long Brooke will remain in her current state, so she settles on basic necessities to last them for a few days. She’ll have to break it to her parents eventually, but for now, she’ll just have to say that they’ll be having an impromptu sleepover. 

Brooke tugs on Chloe’s jacket as she pays for her things at the counter, and she crouches down to her level instead of looking down at her.

“I have, I have,” Brooke says, digging into her pockets to find a dollar and a couple pennies. “Here.”

Chloe was about to laugh, but instead bites her tongue. She takes the money and places it back in her pocket. “Thanks, Brookie, but it’s alright. I’ve got it.” 

Brooke smiles as she wraps her arms around her neck, and Chloe feels her tough exterior starting to melt. She’d do anything to see her smile like that again.

Chloe takes the bag and Brooke’s hand, making sure to walk slower this time, and they make their way to back to the car and towards Chloe’s house. No one was home, much to her relief, allowing Chloe to fully exercise her attempt at kindness without any judgement.

She brings Brooke up the steps and settles her on her bed, unpacking the things from the bag and removing the tags. She stayed with loose dresses and night gowns, since they appeared to be the easiest to change her in and out of. 

“I’ve got some homework to finish, do you wanna take a nap first or something?” Chloe asks awkwardly, rubbing the back of her neck. Brooke nods as she toes her shoes off and removes her cardigan, settling herself under the covers. A memory pops into her head, and she opens her closet to pull out a sock monkey that she used to love when she was a child.

Chloe turns around and shows it to Brooke, and she reaches for it immediately, running her fingers through its’ features first before hugging it against her body. Chloe smiles before sitting down on her desk next to the bed and working on her assignments.

By the time she was finished, it was already 5:30 and figures that Brooke wouldn’t be able to sleep later on in the evening if she napped any longer. 

She lies down on her side next to Brooke, and she watches her for a bit before attempting to wake her up. She would usually yank the covers away, but she knows that baby Brooke probably needs a more delicate approach.

“Brookie, come on,” Chloe almost coos, gently rubbing her tummy to coax her awake. “Time to wake up.”

Brooke hums before covering her face with her hands, wanting a few more minutes of rest. Chloe sighs, trying to wake her up gently by poking her side. Brooke cracks a tiny smile, and when Chloe does it again, she holds back a giggle. 

“Alright, up you go, before you give me no choice,” Chloe chuckles, helping her sit up. She smooths her hair down, and Brooke plays with the button eyes of the sock monkey as she does.

“How are you feeling, hmm?” Chloe asks, reveling in the calm of the moment. It feels very nice, almost tranquil, even. “What’s on your mind?”

Brooke shrugs her shoulders, and Chloe exhales the breath she doesn’t know she was holding. 

“I have something. Can I tell you?”

Brooke nods, hugging the sock monkey close.

“I’m probably going to have to repeat this to you when you go back to normal, but I don’t mind,” Chloe mumbles, but takes a deep breath. “I know that you’re scared of me, scared of making me angry. Any iteration of you, you’re just afraid to step on my toes and I’m so, so sorry that I’ve made you this way.” 

Brooke looks into Chloe’s eyes, listening but not exactly comprehending. Her voice is sad, though, and that upsets Brooke a bit. 

“From now on, I’ll try to be a better friend. Not just to you, but to everyone else,” Chloe promises, more to herself than to the girl in front of her. “I’ll be nicer, more patient. I’ll work on it, I promise.” 

Brooke leans forward to wipe the tears falling on her cheeks, and Chloe scoops her into her arms and hugs her tight. Brooke enjoys the warmth. 

“I’m so glad you’re my best friend.”

They watch some TV while they wait for pizza to come, and Chloe clears up the kitchen before getting the two of them ready for bed. She dresses Brooke in her new yellow nightgown, and she can’t stop twirling, enjoying the fabric billowing around her.

“Come over here, I want to do your hair,” Chloe smiles, and Brooke bounces towards her, sitting between her legs. She parts her wet hair in the middle and creates two clean plaits, and she does the same with hers.

She tucks Brooke under the covers first as she does her skin care routine, and the minute she returns to lay her head down, Brooke immediately clings to her, burying her head in her chest.

“Stay with me?” Brooke mumbles into her neck, her fist gripping the fabric of her shirt. Chloe wraps her arms around her tiny form, dropping her head down to press her lips against her scalp.

“I’m just here, baby girl. I’ll always be here,” Chloe whispers. She traces the patterns on her dress, trying to relax her a bit.

“Love you, Chloe,” Brooke breathes out, her eyes fluttering close. Chloe smiles, the most genuine she’s ever felt, and rests her cheek against the crown of her head. 

“Love you too, Brooke.” 


End file.
